WASHINGTON (CBSDC) – The later rounds of the NFL Draft provide plenty of prospects with checkered pasts the opportunity to prove themselves on the field, while handling their business off it for the first time in a professional manner, and ultimately realize their full potential.

One of those guys, the Redskins’ 2013 6th-round pick Bacarri Rambo, not only was suspended twice in his four years at the University of Georgia, but at least by one account, didn’t even show enough discipline on the field to eventually progress to the professional ranks.

“Three years ago I didn’t think we’d be talking about Bacarri Rambo playing in the NFL,” said Tony Barnhart, a writer for CBS Sports and radio host in Atlanta.

“He was an undisciplined defensive back who had a tendency to be in the wrong place at the wrong time, didn’t know how to take angles on tackles, and he was a good athlete who didn’t really know how to play football all that well,” Barnhart said.

A simple breakdown of his college stats supports Barnhart’s claim of Rambo’s progression. He had 107 tackles and 5 interceptions in his first two season as a Bulldog, while making 57-tackle jump from his freshman to sophomore seasons. Rambo combined for 128 tackles and 11 interceptions during his junior and senior campaigns.

“In the last two years he became a big time player,” Barnhart said. “He learned the off the field thing. He learned his lesson. He got coached up really well, and by the end of the year, he was as good a defensive back as there was in the SEC. It’s nice to see him turn it around. I think he’ll be a really good pro. But he made tremendous strides in his last two years at Georgia.”

And if Bacarri Rambo follows the same career arc into his rookie season in the NFL, he could not only realize his new-found potential as a professional athlete, but even potentially wind up a starter on a thin defensive backfield for the Redskins.